New Drug Offers Hope for Treatment of Common Subtype of Retinitis Pigmentosa

PYC Therapeutics, an ASX-listed drug-development company offering a new generation of RNA therapeutics, has been given approval to commence a clinical trial for a new drug that has shown promise in treating one of the common subtypes of retinitis pigmentosa. The degenerative inherited eye condition affects approximately one in 3,500 people, with almost one in 10 patients having a subtype known as RP11.

The Lions Eye Institute, in collaboration with PYC Therapeutics, has been working on developing a highly promising drug for the treatment of RP11. Currently, there are no treatment options available aside from counselling and visual rehabilitation. Retinitis pigmentosa begins in childhood and leads to severe vision loss in patients at the age of 40, significantly impacting the lives of those affected and their support system.

Associate Professor Fred Chen, a world-leading ophthalmologist who treats numerous patients with retinitis pigmentosa, including families with multiple members who have developed severe retinitis pigmentosa in their early teens, led the research for the new treatment. The successful cell experiments have provided the best proof of principal for the drug to work in humans.

The collaboration between PYC Therapeutics and the Lions Eye Institute resulted in a drug designed to correct the deficiency responsible for RP11 in cells derived from patients with the disease. The clinical trials to establish safety and optimal dose will begin later this year, offering hope for sufferers of RP11 and their families around the world.

The groundbreaking research for this new treatment took place within the Lions Eye Institute’s Ocular Tissue Engineering Lab in Nedlands, Western Australia. Professor Sue Fletcher, Chief Scientific Officer of PYC, and her team worked alongside Associate Professor Chen to achieve these promising results.

The successful completion of the clinical trials and eventual approval of the drug could provide a much-needed treatment option for patients with RP11, improving their quality of life and giving hope to those living with this debilitating eye disease.